Oceanographic instrumentation



Oct. 15, 1968 N. KOOT 3,405,558

OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTRUMENTATION Filed May 9, 1966 /ZZJ/f Z/ ff? imm/M United States Patent O 3,405,558 OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTRUMENTATION Nick Koot, South Laguna, Calif., assgnor to Global Marine Inc., Los Angeles, Calif., a corporation of Delaware Filed May 9, 1966, Ser. No. 548,611 9 Claims. (Cl. 73-170) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE An oceanographic instrumentation long spar buoy of a length which is many times greater than its maximum transverse dimension. Elongate guides extend along a portion of the length of the buoy and movably mount a carrier to the buoy. A transducer is secured to the carrier and is operatively coupled with a transmitter. The carrier is connected with a messenger line for moving it along the buoy to a desired position of the transducer along the length of the buoy.

This invention relates to a system for instrumenting remote locations of the earths oceans for gathering data concerning the ocean and its weather. More particularly, the invention relates to the instrumentation of a long spar buoy.

It has been proposed that long spar buoys constructed of oil Well drill pipe or casing pipe be used as instrumentation platforms in oceanographic instrumentation projects. Such buoys are exceptionally stabe, even in severely agitated seas, and they are rugged and low in cost relative to more conventional buoys which oat on the surface of the ocean. These benefits are obtained when the buoy is quite long, say up to 3200 feet long or more. The length of such buoys also enables suitable instrument transducers to be located at any desired point below the ocean surface within the depth spanned by the submerged length of the buoy. Where a transducer located far below the ocean surface fails, or requires servicing, or is to be replaced with a different transducer designed to sense a different phenomenon, it is a time consuming and costly process to perform such servicing by a diver, if the transducer is close enough to the ocean surface to be reached by a diver. If the transducer is located below the point a diver can safely descend, and if the transducer is rigidly secured to the buoy as has been proposed, the transducer can be serviced only if the buoy is raised. Raising the buoy, however, requires that the buoy be dismantled through the use of special equipment and highly skilled personnel.

This invention provides a novel technique for mounting instrument transducers to long spar buoys so that the transducers can be positioned at any number of desired locations along the lengths of the buoys, yet the transducers can be recovered at the surface of the water with ease for servicing and the like.

Generally speaking, this invention provides an oceanographic instrumentation long spar buoy. The buoy has an elongate positively buoyant body having a length many times greater than the maximum transverse dimension of the body. Elongate guide means extend along a portion of the length of the buoy body and means are provided for mounting the guide means to the body. At least one instrument transducer is provided, together with carrier means coupling the transducer to the guide means for movement along the guide means. The buoy also includes means connected to the carrier means operable for moving the carrier means along the guide means to a selected position of the transducer along the length of the buoy body.

The above-mentioned and other features of the present 3,405,558 Patented Oct. 15, 1968 invention are more fully set forth in the following ldescription which is presented with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. l is a side elevation view, with parts broken away, of an oceanographic instrumentation buoy;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, partially cross-sectional elevation view of a portion of the buoy shown in FIG. l; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevation view of a portion of the structure shown in FIG. 2.

A surface-piercing long spar buoy 10 is shown in FIG. l floating vertically in a body of water 11, such as an ocean, having a free surface 12. The buoy has an elongate, positively buoyant body 13 having a length many times greater than the maximum transverse dimension of the buoy body. Preferably the body is fabricated of an indefinite number of similar elongate tubular elements 14. It is preferred that the buoy body be fabricated of a number of sections of oil well drill pipe or oil well casing pipe of the longest length convenient. To the greatest extent possible the buoy is constructed of pipe sections of equal outer diameter, such sections being welded in endto-end relation by the use of welding collars 15. Alternatively, a number of internally threaded pipe coupling collars engaged with external threads machined in the ends of the pipe sections may be used. As shown in FIG. 2, each pipe length adjacent each of its ends carries a transverse antiflooding bulkhead 16 sealed about its periphery to the inner walls of the pipe length. The bulkheads prevent undesired ooding of the buoy in the event that one or more of the coupling collar joints should leak.

The upper end of buoy body 13 projects about 25 feet above water surface 12. The lower end of the body lies many feet below the water surface. If desired, the lower end of the body may be disposed 3200 feet or more below the water surface; the longer the buoy, the less the buoy heaves vertically in response to passing wave trains. Because of the extreme length of buoy 10, the sections of pipe used in the lower portions of the buoy preferably are of greater wall thickness than those higher in the buoy so that the body may successfully withstand the crushing water pressures encountered at great depths. In many instances, however, buoyancy in the lower portions of the buoy is not required and in such instances the lower portion of the buoy may be fabricated of smaller diameter pipe. Bell reducer connectors 17 are used to interconnect adjacent pipe sections of different outer diameter.

In order that the buoy float in a vertically erect position, selected ones of the lowermost pipe section in the buoy are lled with ballast 18. Water may be used as ballast, but concrete is preferred for this purpose.

A mooring ring 19 is mounted to the lower end of the buoy, as shown in FIG. l. A mooring cable 20, connected to a suitable anchor (not shown) is connected to the mooring ring for holding the buoy at a selected location in the ocean where oceanographic or meteorological measurements are to 'be made.

A transmitter platform 21 is carried by the buoy at its upper end about 25 feet above the main or design waterline of the buoy. The transmitter Iplatform is provided in the form of a housing 22 which may be provided with a circumferential exterior access walkway bounded by a guardrail 23 as shown in FIG. l. Preferably, however, the housing is cylindrical shell 24, as shown in FIG. 2, having no exterior Walkway; such a housing is less subject to damage by adverse wind and wave action than the structure shown in FIG. l. The cylindrical housing shell is provided with a conical roof 25 having an access manhole 26 fitted therein. An axial radio transmission antenna 27 extends upwardly from the buoy A radio transmitter 28 and a transmitter and transducer power source 29 are provided in housing 22. The

transmitter receives the output signals from the instrument transducers carried by the buoy and, after suitable amplification and modulation, transmits these signals to a remote receiving station where the data contained in the transmitted signals is stored or analyzed, as desired.

Buoy carries a plurality of instrument transducers 30 at selected locations along its submerged length. If desired, additional transducers may be carried by the buoy above water surface 12. for measuring selected meteorological phenomena in the vicinity of the buoy.

A pair of parallel -wire rope guide cables 31 are disposed adjacent the exterior surface of the buoy body and extend along the length of the buoy from the underside of the instrument platform housing to a point spaced sufficiently below the water surface to span the depth of water within `which it is desired the transducers be located. The lower ends of the cables are secured to a cable mounting bracket 32 extended laterally from the buoy body at the desired depth below the ocean surface. The upper ends of the cables are secured to the underside of the platform housing by cable tensioning turnbuckles 33. Preferably the turnbuckles are connected to pads 34 secured to a housing support gusset or bracket member 35.

Each transducer 30, or a selected group of transducers for measuring different oceanographic phenomena of interest, is mounted to or within a carrier 36 disposed between the guide cables. Each carrier is provided in the form of a transducer supporting platform or housing. Each carrier is movably coupled to the cable by means of cable journalling eyes 37 which are mounted to the ends of the carrier adjacent the cables. The carriers are secured at selected intervals to a messenger line 38 which extends downwardly from a releasable connection to gusset 35 by a cable fitting 39, over a pulley wheel 40 rotatably mounted to bracket 32, and then back up the buoy to another releasable connection to the gusset at cable fitting 41. Preferably the messenger line is provided by a hollow core woven steel cable. Electrical conductors from the transducers spaced along the messenger line are disposed in the hollow core of the messenger cable and extend to the transmitter mounted to platform 20. Just below cable fitting 39 these conductors emerge from the interior of the messenger line as a multi-conductor cable 42 which is passed through the bottom of the platform to the transmitter, or to any transducer output signal conditioning devices which may be coupled between the transducers and the transmitter.

After the instrumented buoy described above has been installed at a desired location in an ocean, it may be necessary to repair or replace one or more transducers. Servicing of the transducers may be carried out above the water surface merely by disconnecting fittings 39 and 41 from gusset 35 and raising the leg of the messenger line to which the transducer carriers are connected until the desired transducer or transducers are reached. (In order that the disconnected ends of the messenger line not be lost, it is preferred that the disconnected fittings be connected to retainer lines as soon as they are disconnected from the gusset. The retainer lines may be tethered to the buoy or to a service vessel tied up to the buoy.) The carriers are guided in vertical movement along the buoy by guide cables 31. After the desired servicing operations have been performed upon the transducers, the end of the messenger line carrying fitting 39 is pulled back to the upper end of the buoy and the fittings are reconnected to the gusset. Such a procedure does not require the use of special equipment or a num-ber of highly skilled engineers or technicians. As a result, the transducer servicing procedures may be carried out rapidly and inexpensively. Also, the .structure described above permits of ready interchangability of transducers, thereby making it possible to use a single buoy for a number of oceanographic experiments or instrumentation projects.

Instrument transducers may be mounted to the buoy body at any location desired along the length of the ,l 4. l. cable guide members. By way of example rather than limitation, the transducers may be provided for sensing temperature, sound or water velocity, electrical conductivity, radioactivity, ambient light, water turbulence, water pressure, magnetic fields, or seismic or acoustic energy transmission `within the body of water. Meteorological instrument transducers mounted to the buoy above water surface 12 may include devices for measuring air temperature, pressure, velocity or humidity.

The invention has been described above in the context of specific structural arrangements and configurations. The invention has `been so described for the pur poses of example and illustration rather than limitation. It will be apparent to workers skilled in the art to which this invention pertains that modifications and alterations may be made in the above-described structure without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description is not to be regarded as limiting the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An oceanographic instrumentation long spar buoy comprising an elongate positively buoyant body having a length many times greater than the maximum transverse dimension thereof, at least one instrument transducer, transmitter means operatively coupled to the transducer for transmitting to a location remote from the buoy a signal generated by the transducer and supplied to the transmitter means, elongate guide means extending along at least a portion of the length of the body, means for mounting the guide means to the body, carrier means coupling the transducer to the guide means for movement along the guide means, and means connected to the carrier means operable for moving the carrier means along the guide means to a selected position of the transducer relative to the body.

2. A long spar buoy according to claim 1 including a plurality of instrument transducers each producing an output signal in response to a selected physical phenomenon and spaced along the length of the buoy body, and a plurality of carrier means for the transducers, wherein the transmitter means is carried by the buoy body, and wherein the means connected to the carrier means spaces the plurality of carrier means apart along the buoy body and includes conductor means coupling the transducers to the transmitter means.

3. An oceanographic instrumentation long spar buoy comprising an elongate positively buoyant body having a submerged length many times greater than the maximum transverse submerged dimension thereof and arranged to oat vertically in a body of water with its upper end above the water surface, at least one instrument transducer, transmitter means operatively coupled to the transducer for transmitting to a location remote from the buoy a signal generated by the transducer and supplied to t-he transmitter means, elongate guide means extending along the exterior of the buoy from a location above the water surface to a location spaced a selected distance below the Water surface, means at each end of the guide means for mounting the guide means to the body, carrier means coupling the transducer to the guide means for movement along the guide means, and means connected to the carrier means operable for moving the carrier means along the guide means to a selected position of the transducer along the buoy body.

4. A long spar buoy according to claim 3 wherein the guide means comprises a pair of wire rope cables arranged parallel to each other and tensioned between the mounting means. 4

5. A long spar buoy according to claim 4 lwherein the carrier means comprises support means for the transducer, and means mounted to the support means for movably engaging the support means with the cables. 4

6. A long spar buoy according to claim 5 including a plurality of instrument transducers and a plurality of carrier means for the transducers, and wherein the means connected to the carrier means spaces the carrier means apart along the length of the buoy body.

7. A long spar buoy according to claim 6 wherein the means connected to the carrier means comprises a messenger line having its opposite ends connected to the buoy body adjacent the upper ends of said pair of cables and having substantially its midpoint passed over a pulley rotatably mounted to the buoy adjacent the lower ends of said pair of cables.

8. A long spar buoy according to claim 7 including a housing carried =by the buoy body at its upper end, the transmitter means comprising a radio transmitter in the housing, means coupling the transducers to the transmitter for applying transducer output signals to the transmitter, and a radio transmitter antenna carried by the buoy.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,839,920 6/ 1958 MacAnespie. 2,869,108 l/ 1959 Smith. 3,314,009 4/ 1967 Murdock.

RICHARD C. QUEISSER, Primary Examiner.

JERRY W. MYRACLE, Assistant Examiner. 

